Soler starting to unleash his power stroke
Jorge Soler said he didn’t even feel the ball as it connected with his bat and soared to the concourse in left-center field Friday at loanDepot park for a two-run home run. He was hunting a fastball. He struck when the time was right — a 96.5 mph fastball over the heart of the plate from the Seattle Mariners’ Matt Brash on a 3-1 count. And he didn’t miss.
“It was impressive,” manager Don Mattingly said through a smile.
That swing, that home run, was a microcosm of the power the Marlins have hoped to get from Soler when they signed him to a three-year, $36 million deal this offseason.
He sent the ball a projected 468 feet — the third-longest home run in MLB this season through games played Friday and the fifth-longest ever at loanDepot park — for his second home run of the season, one that jumpstarted their sixth consecutive win.
It’s the latest confidence booster for Soler who is starting to produce at the plate after a sluggish start to the 2022 season.
Entering Saturday,
Soler had safely reached base in seven of his past eight games since being moved from the leadoff spot to No. 3 in the lineup. mph — including three that eclipsed 110 mph.
He’s starting to use more of the field as well. Of his 13 hits, all four of his doubles have been down the line (three to the left, one to the right), both of his home runs have been to left-center and his seven singles have scattered throughout the field (two infield singles to the left side, four singles up the middle, one to right-center field).
“We’re starting to see him stay more in the middle of the field and the bat staying in the middle,” Mattingly said. “When that happens, he’s going to start hitting to center, rightcenter, all over.”
And just as Soler is coming into his own, the same can be said about the Marlins as a whole. They entered Saturday on a sixgame winning streak, a feat they didn’t accomplish at any point last season. They have series wins in each of the three matchups they have had against divisional opponents so far this season — three of four against the Philadelphia Phillies, two of three against the Atlanta Braves and a threegame sweep of the Washington Nationals.
The team’s internal optimism about its potential is starting to show on the field.
“We can see the results,” Soler said. “We’re playing fun baseball, happy baseball. We try to do our best every time we go onto the field. And inside the clubhouse you can see there’s great chemistry.”